Aaron Bunnell was in the final semester of his master's degree in voice at UMKC, gearing up for a main stage opera, a recital, and symphony performances, when COVID shut all of it down. He was working as a pharmacy technician for $18 an hour to pay for it. A coworker had just cleared a $10,000 commission on one house and put in his two weeks. Aaron had been half-heartedly clicking through real estate licensing videos at night with a three dollar bottle of wine from Trader Joe's, thinking the test seemed easy. Little did he know.

Five years later he is a Kansas City agent on the Homes By Brandy team at Keller Williams Overland Park, closing roughly $10.5 million across 34 units in 2025. He still sings every week at St. John's off Ward Parkway, in a church choir where everyone holds at least a master's in voice.

It did not come fast. He grew up in a small East Texas town with ex-military parents who told him plainly that anything past high school was on him. His first year in real estate he sold eight homes while still working the pharmacy, waking up at 4:30am to grab the only 15-minute showing slots COVID allowed. Year two nearly ended it. Four straight months with no closings, credit card debt, student loans, no savings, and a partner covering the bills. Then he saw a post on the office Facebook page from Brandy Hensley looking for someone to join Homes By Brandy. Three interviews later he closed $4 million in six months and paid off $15,000 in credit card debt. He has grown 25 to 30 percent every year since.

In this conversation, Aaron Bunnell and host Genevra Collins get into:

• Choosing music over med school, and telling parents who had no money for college
• Why COVID forced him to put a decade of vocal training on the back burner, and why he refused to let it go completely
• Finding a mentor the old-fashioned way: 50 people applied, 3 picked up the phone, and he was one
• The four-month drought, and what it felt like to let his partner cover the bills
• Why the teams he interviewed with gave him the ick, and what was different about Brandy's
• Answering emails in the shower, and the boundary conversation that saved his business and his relationship
• Setting goals by what balance actually feels like, not by where you land on the leaderboard
• Appearances versus real financial independence in the gay community
• What he would tell a new agent, and what he wants to be remembered for

This episode is for anyone in a creative career wondering how to make it pay, new agents wondering if the drought ever ends, and anyone still trying to fix everything themselves instead of asking for help.

Connect with Aaron Bunnell on Facebook and Instagram, or find him at a Mid-America LGBT Chamber event.

The Red Chair is hosted by Genevra Collins, CEO and Team Leader of Keller Williams Overland Park. New episodes drop every other Wednesday. Follow the show so you don't miss the next one.

Jennifer Smeltzer spent her first five years in real estate without selling a single home. She learned the investment side first, and that background is a big reason she's landed on America's Top 100 Real Estate Agents list seven years running as founder of Just Say Home KC, a Keller Williams agent closing 70-plus deals a year.

Before any of that, she spent 15 years in ministry. In her 40s she took a job property managing 45 to 50 units to learn investing on someone else's dime, and got licensed almost by accident when the company that hired her realized Missouri required it. She spent the next several years on the acquisitions and bookkeeping side of two investment companies with opposite philosophies: one chasing cash flow in rougher neighborhoods, and one chasing appreciation in better school districts. This contrast still shapes how she advises clients today.

In 2016 she moved to Keller Williams and went all in on straight commission. A few years later, at the height of her production, she built a small, intentional team of three or four agents each clearing six figures. She found she didn't love the coaching and managing that came with leading one, and about five years ago she disbanded the team, redirecting that passive income dream back into her own rental portfolio instead.

In this conversation, Jennifer Smeltzer and host Genevra Collins get into:

• Fifteen years in ministry, and the leap into straight commission real estate in her 40s
• Getting licensed almost by accident, because Missouri required it for the property management job she took just to learn investing
• The moment "I want 10 properties" went from overwhelming to obvious
• Two investment company philosophies: cash flow in tougher neighborhoods versus appreciation in better school districts
• Building a team because it was supposed to be the next step, then disbanding it to go back to being an individual agent
• The Sunday night she reviewed offers on her day off, and the coaching question that changed how she sets deadlines: "Who set the deadline?"
• Why a rental portfolio is never actually "passive," and what a bad tenant can really cost you
• Tax strategies she wishes she'd learned sooner, including cost segregation and the Augusta rule
• Her advice for anyone considering their first investment property, or their first year as an agent

This episode is for Kansas City agents weighing whether to build a team, aspiring investors deciding between cash flow and appreciation, and anyone who struggles to actually take a day off.

Connect with Jennifer Smeltzer at ⁠jsmeltzer@kw.com⁠.

The Red Chair is hosted by Genevra Collins, CEO and Team Leader of Keller Williams Overland Park. New episodes drop every Wednesday. Follow the show so you don't miss the next one.

What if the key to building a million-dollar real estate business isn't posting more, but showing up as yourself?

Rachel Kilmer, better known as Rach the Realtor KC, transformed an unexpected career change into one of Kansas City's fastest-growing real estate brands. After leaving a stable sales career in 2020, she went six months without a paycheck, bet completely on herself, and built a business that now closes more than 70 transactions a year, powered by authentic, hyper-local content and genuine relationships.

Before real estate, Rachel was a TV sports reporter, becoming the first female sports reporter in western Nebraska at just 20 years old. Those years taught her to think on her feet, handle pressure, and tell compelling stories—skills that later became the foundation of her brand.

Everything changed when one spontaneous TikTok filmed with a messy ponytail and a pimple on her nose exploded to 800,000 views. Instead of chasing trends, Rachel doubled down on what she knew best: Kansas City, humor, and being unapologetically herself.

In this conversation, Genevra Collins and Rachel dive into:

• The mindset it takes to leave security behind and bet on yourself
• How one viral TikTok completely changed her marketing strategy
• Why authenticity consistently beats polished content on social media
• The content framework that generates real estate leads year after year
• Why she still invests $25,000 annually in direct mail, even with a massive online presence
• How she scaled from a solo agent to a high-performing business with a three-person team
• The biggest mistakes agents make with social media and personal branding
• Why consistency, not creativity is the real secret to long-term growth
• How she's thoughtfully incorporating AI without losing her authentic voice

Whether you're a real estate agent, entrepreneur, content creator, or someone considering a major career leap, this episode is packed with practical strategies for building a business people remember, and a brand people trust.

Connect with Rachel Kilmer

Follow Rachel for Kansas City real estate insights, social media tips, and behind-the-scenes content:

Instagram & TikTok: @RachTheRealtorKC
Coaching: Rach the Realtor Coaching Collaborative (RTRCCO) — linked through her primary social profiles.

Rachel also shared that her DMs are always open if you have questions about real estate, branding, or growing your business.

About The Red Chair

Hosted by Genevra Collins, The Red Chair features candid conversations with top entrepreneurs, real estate leaders, and high performers who share the stories, strategies, and mindset behind their success. Every episode is designed to help you build a business, and a life with intention.

Follow The Red Chair on Spotify so you never miss a new episode.